Amateur-built RANS S-12 N8028W accident near French Lick, Indiana

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed while in a steep turn, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall/mush at a low altitude.

NTSB analysis

After a short local flight, which consisted of several uneventful turns, the pilot decided to return to the airport for a landing. He reported that the airplane started to lose altitude as he made a right turn to enter the downwind leg of the landing pattern. The pilot responded by advancing the throttle to maximum engine power; however, he was unable to increase airspeed or arrest the descent before the airplane collided with a tree. The passenger reported that the airplane appeared to lose altitude as the pilot performed a steep right turn over a wooded area southwest of the airport. A postaccident airframe examination and engine test run revealed no evidence of a mechanical malfunction or failure that would have precluded normal operation. Wind at the nearest aviation weather reporting station about the time of the accident were calm. The pilot's inability to arrest the airplane's descent or increase its airspeed during a steep turn in the airport traffic pattern, despite his application of full engine power, is consistent with the airplane having encountered an aerodynamic stall.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN14LA045 for the full record.